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The cook just didn't give a darn. Food made me ill

1 Posted on 04 / 07 / 2013

I heard this place was great and was excited about trying it. My experience was so bad that I doubt I'll ever give it a second try.

The atmosphere is like a corner bar that just happens to serve food, too: torn vinyl booths, metal tables with metal stacking chairs, billiard tables occupying most of the room. It was so noisy (mostly from the stereo, not patrons talking) that I kept having to ask my husband to repeat himself, and we were there for lunch.

The service was OK: not fast, not overly slow. Nothing bad, nothing great.

I ordered "thinly sliced, grilled seitan" with tofu scramble. I got a 3" solid slab of deep-fried seitan, literally fried black. As I'm sure you can imagine, that leaves the middle a lukewarm, moist mess. The tofu scramble was just as bad: large, hard lumps in a sea of overly-moist, undercooked scramble. How the heck do you make large, hard lumps in tofu scramble? These blobs were seriously too tough and rubbery to pierce with a fork. The flavor of what I was able to eat was pretty bad, too. I didn't eat much of it.

Honestly, I've had better at homes of people who are making their first-ever attempt at veg cooking. I think the cook just phoned it in and didn't give a darn. There was obviously no quality control in the kitchen at all. I almost wrote "fire the cook" on the bill.

My husband got a vegetarian scramble and said his was OK, nothing great.

This was on of the worst meals I've had in a long, long time. I ate there about six hours ago and am still feeling unwell. Go to Comet or Simple instead. You'll be happier.

Pros: Are there any?
Cons: horribly prepared food, incredibly noisy, food made me ill

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The Palamino Grill

4 Posted on 05 / 02 / 2012

I love this place. The fact I can have light and crunchy onion rings, hot sauce slathered tofu and seitan wings and then chow down to a vegan sloppy joe is amazing. The food has interesting flavor profiles. I wish we weren't working because a cold beer with all this delicious food on a nice warm Milwaukee day would have been perfect.

Our waitress could have at least made believe she cared though. It was almost like we were bothering her. From her tossing the menus on the table, forgetting to fill a water glass, forgetting to replace a dish with cheese melted on it, "our dishwasher is terrible." OK, nice to know, bring me a clean plate please, to the answer to the "What vegan food do you like on the menu?" question being, "I don't eat vegan food." Really? Go work at McDonalds.

oh well, at least the food was good. Pics and more on my blog: www.martysflyingveganreview.com

Pros: great bar food, outdoor sidewalk seating, quiet residential neighborhood for lunch
Cons: waitress

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greasy, comfort food!

4 Posted on 08 / 28 / 2011

We've been here a few times now, and have loved it every visit! True, the food is greasy, but it's a bar... I wouldn't go here expecting a gourmet menu. Everything has been delicious-- toffalo wings, mozz sticks, tots, veggie burger, sandwiches. You get a ton of food for your money, because most menu items include a choice of two sides. Their vegan ranch is amazing. We almost always leave with enough leftovers for lunch the next day. Bonus-- on your birthday, they offer free Lakefront taps!

Pros: great value, outdoor seating, lots of choices
Cons: limited seating, not so healthy

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Greasy Bar Food Nothing More- Nothing Less

3 Posted on 07 / 13 / 2010

Palomino is the place that my friends always want to go, it's hip, offers both veg and omni meal choices and of course drinks. If it is a rare time that you get to binge on greasy vegan bar food- this is your spot! It has it all: Tofulo wings, hash/scrambler/gravy skilleton, vegan desserts etc. If you wind up here and overly greasy food makes you just sick (like it can me) try the blackend tofu salad. It is delicious, huge and did I say delicious?! For a place whose motto is "if its good, its better fried" They can serve up a mean salad. Also as previously mentioned, they have a separate fryer for us veggies! So if you want it- go for it!

Pros: vegan fryer, really greasy bar food, hip
Cons: popular/gets crowded, really greasy bar food, hip

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Don't bother

1 Posted on 03 / 31 / 2010

I used to eat here all the time, but everything tasted the same. Then the food made me sick. I stopped eating there and then a friend of mine told me that they got a new "head chef" aka fry cook, and that the menu was improved. I decided to give it another shot and it just made me throw up again. Everything is either deep fried or swimming in grease. Unless you like that, don't bother wasting your time or money. The drinks are good, though.

Pros: Drinks, Patio, TVs
Cons: Greasy, Greasy, Greasy!

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Great place for vegan "sometimes" food

4 Posted on 02 / 26 / 2009

The Palomino is a great place for vegans to eat, because they have a specific vegan fryer, and clearly label the vegan menu options. They also serve omni options like every other restaurant in Milwaukee, but there's nothing out of the ordinary there.

The toffalo wings are a vegan stand-out, and it's nice that they make them out of spiced tofu and seitan. They are listed as an appetizer, but I usually make them into a meal. The vegan ranch sauce which comes with the wings is great.

The reason I don't go to The Palomino often, though, is that there is basically nothing healthy on the menu, vegan or otherwise. I only eat deep-fried food a couple of times a year at the most. Those occasions generally only arise when I'm dining with omni friends.

Another negative aspect of dining at The Palomino is that it is a bar. Though they only allow smoking near the bar, you're still going to leave smelling like garbage. If you're going out for drinks, anyway, it's not a problem. If you're just going out for dinner, though, it can be annoying. Assuming you're a non-smoker, that is.

In a town that desperately needs some vegan-only restaurants with healthy options, as well as a smoking ban in restaurants, The Palomino is a great option.

Pros: dedicated vegan fryer, the cowboy decor is badass, reasonably priced
Cons: smoking, nothing healthy on the menu, can be noisy, but it IS a bar...

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Vegan junk Food:)

4 Posted on 11 / 06 / 2008

It may sound negitive but it's not. I wouldn't eat here everyday since most of the food is deep fried bar food, but it's sooo nice for a vegan to be able to go to a bar and order food. The vegan ranch sauce was better then I remember regular ranch sauce being. I got it with the vegan tofu and seitan "chicken wings". They were delish! Huge meal portions since you get two sides (about 5 are vegan) with an entree. Served hot, not very quickly, but the waitress was friendly. Loved that they labled all the menu items that were vegan with a V. They "get it" and I didn't feel like I had to worry about "secret" ingredients. They even lable the sauces with a V. Nice big screen tv's perfect bar atmosphere since the doors were open the place wasn't too smokey. Proof you could become a fat vegan.

Pros: large portions, large variety, fun atmosphere
Cons: unhealthy , smokers, noisy

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Vegan Oasis

4 Posted on 05 / 05 / 2008

The Palomino does happen to be a BAR, however, sometimes even Vegans need to escape to the comfort of the type of gritty, dark bar room atmosphere that the Pal provides. Although smoking is allowed, it is usually not noticeable. The staff is VERY vegan knowledgeable and accommodating. Even the Bloody Marys are vegan. There are plenty of vegan options on the comfort food menu, but if you are looking for something HEALTHY try the Blackened Fajita Tofu Salad! It is SO huge I had to take 1/2 home. and with the Tequila dressing, one of the best flavored salad experiences I have ever had.
Someone saw me order it and ordered it themselves when they saw mine. And they usually have a HILARIOUS movie playing on the big flat screen t.vs (I've seen Mystery Men and Taladega Nights the past 2 times I've visited).

Pros: Ambience, Plentiful Portions, Friendly, helpful staff
Cons: Smoking, Mostly FRIED

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Good Place to Eat

4 Posted on 11 / 27 / 2007

I was too full to eat much by the time I got to this restaurant during my visit, but had to make it anyway. The food was good, nice atmosphere, and the tater tots were awesome [tater tots are my weakness :)].